Discrimmination and the Catholic Church
by IlessThanThreeYou.x
Summary: DISCRIMINATION AND IT'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. STOP! essay time :


**DISCRIMINATION AND IT'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.**

_By Vanessa Song_

Discrimination is very common in society today, it is a prominent issue that is the topic of many controversial debates. In the photo stimuli Discrimmination is clearly demonstrated as a different coloured person that is standing outside of a circle of people that look like they all belong, the single person standing away holds himself in a dejected posture depicting the negative image that it is trying to portray. The issue of discrimination can be tackled through many different tactics, together we can make an impact on the lives of other people, individually we can work towards bettering ourselves and by doing a number of different things can make a change.

The issue of injustice in this photo is discrimination, _Discrimination is the unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of predjudice._ This issue can happen to anyone, anywhere and at any time, The UN states that discrimination can take many forms and shapes but they all involve some form of exclusion and/or rejection. Types of bigotry can include; race, sex, age, religion, sexual orientation, disabilities and cultural differences. These injustices can affect not only the people, but their families as well. In Australia, there is a belief of multiculturalism, in that Australia is made up of many people from many different cultures and countries, this issue of injustice in Australia is a contradiction of that fundamental belief. This issue can be found in the workplace, home and school etc. Many people are affected by discrimination and the predjudices that entail, many are left with scarred view of the workplace or schooling environment, and others apprehensive about what is happening to them, or what has already happened to them.

There are many causes of the issue discrimmination, firstly, most cases of bigotry can be traced back to personal and public views and opinions of members in society and the community upon those of different ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender and age. As a consequence people are left with severe phsycological issues, this can be demonstrated through things like; anxiety and depression. The perdujudice of a person can not only affect he/she as it can also affect their families. Secondly, Absensce of knowledge can also lead people to have false assumptions of someone who is of a different culture, background, age, sex etc. and finally, Negative attitudes allow people to have and make askew decisions and judgements about people's appearance, religion etc. as a consequence, the sufferer may indure years of discrimmination, rejection and exclusion, this may lead to severe emotional scarring and/or denial of discrimination.

In the scripture references; Galations 3: 28 and Genesis 1: 27 the issue of bigotry and discrimination is conveyed through different quotes, these are as follows; (Galations 3: 28) _"__There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus"_. This excerpt demonstrates the bariers that stand between people and how they need to be revoked in order for society to become more understanding of one another, it explains how we are all the same made in the image of Jesus Christ. The Second passage from Genesis 1:27 is as follows; _"__So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them"_ this scripture reference describes the importance of treating everyone as equals because God created males and females in his image, thus supporting the ideology of equality between men and women.

The issue of injustice is Discrimination and we as catholics are expected to treat all people as equal individuals and offer equal opportunities for everyone. The Social teaching is as follows; 'All people are equal – since all men posses a rational soul and is created in God's image as well as sharing the same divine calling and destiny, basic equality of all must receive increasingly greater recognition'. And the catholic social teaching of; 'Everyone should have equal opportunities because we are all children of God, we share the same rights before God and man, all men of good desire that the doors of opportunity be opened equally to all who are their brothers under our eternal father'. The teachings relate heavily to the issue of Discrimination and bigotry, as Catholics we are expected to apply these teachings to our every day lives, to work hard to achieve equality for everyone, to eliminate all pressing issues like; racism and sexism etc.

One Catholic organisation in Australia that aims to eliminate and combat the issue of discrimination is the 'Jesuit Refugee Service' their mission is to accompany, serve and defend the rights of refugees and forcibly displaced people around the world and in our own Australian Community, they seek to support assylum seekers in the community with accomodation, financial support and english classes, job searches as well as personal accompaniement and support. Some of It's activities include numerous projects like; researching climate changed displacement in the pacific, offering numerous things for assylum seekers on Christmas island and interacting with people at villawood detention centre. One of their more well- known projects is The JRS Shelter Project which began in May 2007 to offer help to those who have just entered the country with settling in to society, with job searches, english classes, financial management and social engagement, this project is funded by donations. This organisation achieves it's goals and makes a difference by helping the disadvantaged people in society, whom lately as a consequence of media coverage and the fast rising population index have been discriminated against, making it harder to find work and a place in society as a result of their ethnicity or their status as a refugee.

In conclusion the issue that was most prominent in the second stimuli was Discrimination, this is conveyed through the use of colours and positioning of the figures in the photo.

The Scripture reference and gudidance from Catholic Social teaching convey the need to take action and find solutions to solve the issue of bigotry in society, the catholic teachings show us the importance of treating everyone equally and offering equal opportunities to all. The issue of discrimination is extremely common in society today and therefore the Church and Catholic teachings call us to act and find a resolution to this issue, as well as doing the little things as Catholics to ensure equality around us.

**By Vanessa Song**


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